


Winning the War is Half the Battle

by AyalaAtreides



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Canon Relationships, Multi, Post-Canon, Pre-Relationship, The Wrath of Mermista, hands are nearly thrown, post-war fic, the author has several different opinions about Hordak, the team talks some stuff out
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-14 01:09:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,844
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29411013
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AyalaAtreides/pseuds/AyalaAtreides
Summary: The war is over. Prime is defeated. And it happened less than a minute ago. So, as you might imagine, Adora's still reeling. And the big question is: what happens next? Not tomorrow, or even an hour later, but right in the aftermath, when the adrenaline is still fresh and you can't quite wrap your head around it. What do you do after winning a war?(An expansion on the finale, and the events immediately following Prime's defeat. And when I say immediately, I mean immediately!)
Relationships: (we'll get there), Adora/Catra (She-Ra), Bow/Glimmer (She-Ra), Entrapta & Hordak (She-Ra), Entrapta & Scorpia (She-Ra), Entrapta/Hordak (She-Ra), Perfuma & Scorpia (She-Ra), Perfuma/Scorpia (She-Ra), Scorpia & Wrong Hordak, Super Pal Trio - Relationship, and introducing the friendship you never knew you needed:, best friend squad, with hints of
Comments: 10
Kudos: 22





	Winning the War is Half the Battle

**Author's Note:**

> This was gonna be a one-shot. LOL, whoops. Probably gonna be 2, maybe 3 chapters? And I have a small continuity of short post-war fics planned to follow this one, so if you like this one be sure to keep an eye on me for the sequels :P

**Chapter 1: "Part of the Problem"**

How was one supposed to feel after defeating an ancient tyrant who had rained terror upon the entire known universe? What was a girl to do at a time like this, after putting an end to a monster once thought to be unbeatable, having succeeded where so many before her had tried and failed? Horde Prime had destroyed worlds, wiped entire civilizations off the map, and now he was gone.

She'd done that. She'd just done it, in fact. She'd defeated Horde Prime, and she'd done it literally less than a minute ago.

And she wasn't worried that he wasn't really gone, or that he'd come back somehow; no, she knew he was truly gone. She felt it all the way down to the marrow of her bones. She'd felt the exact moment it had happened. It was just... well, _wow_. Prime was _gone_ , at _her own hands_. The war was over. The war had literally just ended, like, not even a minute ago, right then and there. It was over. They'd won. They were free. Etheria was free. Every planet under Prime's control was free. The universe was free.

...She'd just saved the _entire universe._ A giddy little giggle burst out of her and she clapped her hand over her mouth. She, Adora, She-Ra, had _toppled a galactic empire_.

" _Ohhhhhhhhh_ wow," she mumbled behind her hand.

It felt like a dream. She dropped her hand and took a deep breath, feeling the warm breeze on her face and the strange, almost electric feeling of the released magic in the air. She exhaled slowly, shakily, as the tension in her muscles started to ebb away, leaving behind a loose jelly kind of feeling.

Below her, in the canyon, she could see her friends and allies coming back together, their voices already drifting up to her in joyous reunion. She turned; behind her, Entrapta was talking a mile a minute with her arms still locked around the waist of the newly un-Primed Hordak, who looked actually _happy_ (Adora hadn't even known he could _do_ 'happy'), but also extremely bewildered.

Happy and bewildered. Adora could relate to that.

Her head was spinning, and as much as she liked to think she'd soon be able to go and just take a nap for a few hours (or days), she had the nagging feeling that there would be _things_ to do. _Stuff_ that would need taking care of. What happened after a war ended, anyway? What did people _do_ after toppling an empire? Surely there was something they ought to be doing. Surely, right? Surely it wasn't _this_ easy?

As she watched Hordak try to keep up with Entrapta's cheerful barrage, it occurred to her that their former worst enemy would probably be one of those things that needed dealing with. Since he was standing right there, she wondered if she ought to do something; but what, exactly? And... did it _have_ to be done right away? She kind of hated to break up this bizarrely endearing moment between her weirdest friend and her ex-evil-overlord (ex-evil ex-overlord? Currently-evil ex-overlord?), but she also felt like she ought to _do something_. Was she supposed to go and... _arrest_ him? Was he their prisoner now?

Although, she wondered, did he even _need_ to be a prisoner at this point? Hordak wasn't going to be a problem anymore. She knew it. Felt it in her heart. She knew it with the same certainty that she knew Horde Prime was gone. But... well... Hordak _had_ _been_ a problem. He'd been all of Etheria's problem for many, _many_ years. And that was, well, a problem. And if the way Entrapta was clinging to the guy was anything to go by, addressing that problem was going to be a problem in more ways than one.

As she stood there wrestling with it, Hordak must've noticed her attention because he tore his eyes off the chattering tech geek and looked over at her. He gingerly patted Entrapta on the shoulder, and nodded towards Adora. Entrapta looked over and grinned at her, relinquishing her grip so she could link arms with Hordak instead and wave energetically at Adora with her free hand. Well now Adora _had_ to do _something_ , otherwise it'd just be weird, because at the moment she was just standing there gawking at the two of them. Puffing out a little sigh, she walked over to them.

"Hiiii, Adora!" Entrapta said.

She returned the smile warmly. "Hi," she said. She took a breath to say something, except... she didn't actually know what to say. These would be She-Ra's first words in the wake of victory. She felt like she ought to say something... _special._ Something for the Etherians of the future to look back on. Meanwhile, though, these two were watching her. Waiting for her to say something. Great. She clicked her tongue, swinging her arms at her sides.

"Soooo. Uh... war's over, huh?" That was what came out of her mouth. Great. Very heroic. Really, one for the history books. Totally something future generations would want to carve onto plaques or whatever.

Hordak regarded her solemnly. "You have done what many would have deemed impossible- myself included, not so long ago."

Entrapta piped up. "Statistically speaking, it was _improbable_ rather than _impossible_." Hordak considered, then nodded in agreement.

Adora sighed. "Yeah, it, uh, it still doesn't feel real," she admitted.

Hordak glanced down at Entrapta, then back up at Adora. "...I believe I understand you in that regard. This is a day I envisioned many times, but... not _quite_ like this."

Adora barked out a breathless, startled laugh. "Yeah, I uh, I know what you mean!" Recovering herself a little, she added wryly, "I'm guessing you and I probably imagined this thing ending pretty differently. Disappointed?"

Hordak kind of smiled, almost. "Not particularly. Imagine my surprise. I suppose I'm due to offer a formal declaration of surrender?"

Adora let out a whooshing breath, relieved she didn't have to be the one to get things going. "Ohhh, could you? I mean, it kinda seemed obvious at this point, and uh honestly you kinda stopped being our biggest problem as soon as Prime got here, no offense, heh, I mean... uh, ahem, yes, please, go ahead, uh, proceed." She squared her shoulders, trying to recover at least a _little_ dignity for the occasion.

"Very well, then." Gathering himself with as much gravitas as he could muster with a purple science gremlin still ( _still_!) holding onto him, Hordak proclaimed, "As Lord of the Fright Zone, speaking for the Galactic Horde as the final vessel of Horde Prime, I, Hordak, hereby surrender to the Princess Alliance and declare an end to the Horde's hostilities against Etheria. And, on behalf of the Galactic Horde, I declare an end to the Horde's hostilities across the universe, on all planets formerly annexed as the Horde Empire."

The moment felt unreal, especially with Entrapta clinging to his arm, and Adora fought back a hysterical giggle rising in the back of her throat. Yeah, she'd imagined this moment so many times, and not once had it ever looked anything like this. "Ah- ahah, um. Yeah. Thank you. I, uh, accept on behalf of the Princess Alliance?" Then something occurred to her. "Wait, can I do that, or...? Actually, can you say all of that again once we get back down there with everybody else?"

Hordak's glance drifted towards the canyon. "Ah. Of course," he said stiffly. She could understand why he'd be feeling some trepidation about facing everyone down there, but... that _was_ his own fault. Hordak's expression shifted into something like resignation. "And what is to become of me now? Am I to be your prisoner, Adora?"

She let out a sound halfway between a laugh and a sigh. "Honestly? I have no idea. I've never won a war before."

"Wait, the war's over, isn't it? Why would Hordak be a prisoner?" Entrapta asked, as sincere as ever.

Adora sucked in a breath through her teeth. "Uhhhh... y'know what? Let's have that conversation _later_ , okay?"

"That's fine! Hordak and I have a lot to catch up on, anyway," she agreed cheerfully. Then she gasped and looked up at him, tugging his arm excitedly. "OOH! That reminds me! You've gotta meet Wrong Hordak!"

Hordak could have sworn he felt his brain reboot. "Wro- what- who is- Entrapta, _what_ -"

Too late; Entrapta broke into a trot, linking her arm tighter around his and pulling him along, only to stop at the edge of the cliff. "Huh. There's no way down. That could be a problem."

Adora strolled up to them and scoffed, grinning. "No sweat, I got this." And she manifested her sword and swung it and just carved a zigzagging path down to the canyon floor, because she was She-Ra and she could do that.

After they'd rejoined the others, Adora hadn't really meant to wander away from the group. As she'd drifted amongst her friends and allies, feeling their voices rise around her, she'd felt a strange stillness come over her. Not in a bad way, but it was... new. Odd. And she'd passed through the group, letting her feet carry her to a high ridge overlooking the valley beyond. Creatures she'd never seen soared by, riding the breeze. The air felt alive in an entirely new way.

As she breathed deeply, that feeling of stillness welled up... oh. It was peace. She felt peaceful. And when Catra joined her by her side, joining hands and pressing their foreheads together, and when Glimmer and Bow tackled them and they lay sprawled in the grass together, talking about what would happen next, that was when she knew this was real. The war was really over. It was finally sinking in that this was real.

The four of them sat on the slope above the valley for a few minutes. A few gloriously peaceful, quiet minutes. Probably the quietest and most peaceful minutes of Adora's whole life, really. The Fright Zone had been quiet sometimes, but never peaceful. And, well, the entire time she'd lived at Bright Moon there'd been the teensy little matter of the war against the Horde looming over all their heads. And now there was peace _and_ quiet, both at the same time. Well... not entirely quiet. The giddy chattering of their friends drifted up towards them. It was one of the best sounds Adora had ever heard.

It was Bow who broke the contented silence with the inevitable question. "Okay, but, seriously, what do we do now?" he asked.

"Uh, Bow, didn't we just decide on that?" Glimmer teased. "Best Friend Squad space road-trip, remember?"

"Well, yeah, but I meant more like... right now, immediately?" Bow said. "Are we supposed to... I dunno, _do_ something? Since we just ended a war and all?"

"I was wondering that too," Adora admitted. She was relieved she wasn't the only one feeling it. Because at that particular moment, it mostly just seemed like the only thing happening was a whole lot of hugging and talking and celebrating, and since when had anything ever been this simple?

"Whatever it is, I really hope it involves sleep," Catra said through a yawn. Bow squeaked, eyes sparkling. Catra shot him a _look_. "If you say that yawn was cute, Arrow Boy, I'll start another war." Bow held both hands up. Catra relented, smirking and socking him lightly in the bicep. The yawn _was_ cute ( _the way her ears kinda drooped to the sides a little bit!_ ), but Adora decided to be merciful and not say it... this time.

As they stood up and headed down the slope towards the rest of the group, Glimmer danced up between Adora and Catra, slinging her arms around their waists. "Soooo, what happened down there, hmm?" she asked gleefully, arching her eyebrows. "You two seem _awwwwfully cloooose_ all of a sudden!"

Adora grinned at Catra's shy smile and reddening cheeks, but Adora knew she was blushing too. "Oh, you know, Catra said some _really_ sappy stuff and brought me back from almost dying, no big deal," she said, suddenly feeling bashful in a way that definitely didn't match the way she was trying to sound all casual about it.

"Oho, she did, did she?" Glimmer cooed, shooting a sidelong smirk up at Catra.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever, Adora, I didn't do it because I _like_ you or anything," Catra teased back.

"Oh no no no no nooo, of course not," Adora agreed, very solemnly. Then a sly grin split her face. "You _looooove_ me!"

Between them, Glimmer let out a delighted shriek and squeezed them both. "I knew it!"

Bow dashed up behind them and wrapped his arms around Adora and Catra's shoulders, bunching the three of them up. "Awww, romance in the Best Friend Squad!"

"You're all dorks," Catra chortled, rolling her eyes.

"Uh huh, but I'm _your_ dork," Adora said, crossing her arms with a smug smile.

"Yeah, I have pretty bad taste," Catra shot back, smirking, but the red in her cheeks spread and got even redder.

Adora leaned past Glimmer, lips puckered to a ridiculous degree. "You _looOOOoove_ meeee, you _luuuuuhhhhhve_ _meeee_ -" She broke off, cackling, as Catra reached across Glimmer and playfully shoved her face. Adora shoved right back, naturally. Catra ducked and easily twisted out from Glimmer's arm, darting ahead a few steps and poking her tongue out at Adora over her shoulder. Clearly, Adora had to give chase at that point. They hurtled down the slope, both laughing breathlessly,

As Glimmer and Bow caught up to them, Adora glanced back just in time to see them clasp hands, smiling softly at one another. She stopped dead in her tracks and gasped loudly, hands flying to either side of her face. "Whaaaa- since _when?!_ "

Bow shrugged sheepishly. "Like I said. Romance in the Best Friend Squad."

Adora made a wordless yodeling noise of incoherent joy and flung herself at them, hugging them both.

Downslope, while the Best Friend Squad had been sitting and resting together, Scorpia had been engaged in energetic conversation with Perfuma, but there was something on her mind, and she just couldn't ignore it anymore. She steeled herself and set her pincers on Perfuma's shoulders.

"Okay, I gotta know," she said gravely.

Perfuma blinked, taken aback. "Know... what?" she asked, cheeks tinging pink.

"I'm afraid to ask, but I- augh, I just can't live with not knowing!"

"Wh-what? Not knowing what?"

"And no matter what the truth is, you gotta promise you'll be honest with me. Don't hold back! Don't spare my feelings!"

"Of course! Wh-whatever it is, of course I'll be honest with you," Perfuma assured her, reddening further.

"Perfuma... did I do awful things when I was chipped?" Scorpia's head dropped down between her shoulders, like she was weighed down by her imagined crimes.

Perfuma blinked, astonished, then let out a soft laugh. "No, Scorpia, you did _not_ do awful things," she assured her, lifting her hands and placing them on her pincers.

"Really? You're sure? Gah, I mean, I kinda remember what happened while the chip was on me, but it's all fuzzy!" Scorpia lamented. "Are you _sure_?"

"Yes. You fought us, but not even Prime could make you hurt your friends, not really. In fact, you had a chance to strike down Adora and me- Prime commanded you to do it, and you fought back! You let us go!"

"I did?"

"You had a clear shot. We were right there, right in front of you, helpless. Prime ordered you to take us down. There's no way you could've missed that shot by accident. You let us escape. You created a smokescreen so we could get out."

Scorpia let out a gusty sigh of relief and her head sagged even lower, her shoulders going slack. "Ohhhh thank goodness! I don't know how I would've gone on living with myself if I'd-"

"But you didn't," Perfuma assured her, rubbing one hand over her claw reassuringly. "And I knew you wouldn't!"

"Really? How?" Scorpia asked, lifting her head, eyes widening. Now it was her face that tinted pink.

"Because you're you!" Perfuma said, beaming.

Scorpia sniffled, eyes shining, lower lip trembling. "That's the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me!" she wailed. Perfuma squeaked in surprise when Scorpia swooped her up into a tight hug, twirling in a dizzying circle, then she relaxed into the embrace and laughed softly.

As Scorpia set her down, their eyes met and held in a soft gaze for a wordless moment, hands and pincers lingering in a light touch, when an overjoyed whinny and the muted thud of hooves on grass cut in.

"Scorpia! You're back!" Swiftwind exclaimed, galloping over and skidding to a stop next to her.

"Hey, buddy!" Scorpia said. She hugged Swiftwind around the neck and he returned the hug as best he could, curling his wings forward and butting his chin against the back of her shoulder. Scorpia let go and stepped back, grinning. "Lookin' fabulous as always, I see!"

"Thank you, thank you!" Swiftwind said grandly, tossing his mane and sparkling majestically. "And how's it feel to be free and unchipped?"

"Feels great!" Scorpia said, pincers on hips. She shared another soft smile with Perfuma. "Feels really great," she added gently.

A chattering voice nearby caught their attention. They looked over to see Entrapta pulling along a confused but unresisting clone, who was clearly trying to keep up with her rambling monologue.

Scorpia chuckled. "Man, I should've guessed Entrapta would be making friends with the clones! That's so her."

"Y'know, it really is!" Swiftwind agreed.

Perfuma laughed softly, then she clasped her hands delightedly and exclaimed, "That reminds me, I should introduce you to Wrong Hordak!"

" _Wrong_ Hordak?" Scorpia echoed, bewildered.

"He's a clone that came back from the Horde flagship with Adora and the others, and he's been such a sweetheart! I think you two will get along really well. You both have such wonderful, positive energies! That's him, over there." She pointed to another clone who was running around with Emily and a weird cat-critter Scorpia hadn't seen before; this clone looked exactly like the rest, being a clone and all, distinguished only by his unusually playful demeanor and lack of a tabard. Perfuma rested her elbow in her cupped palm and tapped her fingertip against her chin, surveying the additional clone Entrapta had apparently acquired. "So, I wonder who _that_ is?"

"Let's find out!" Scorpia said cheerfully. She raised her voice and shouted, "Entrapta! Hey, over here!"

She turned to look, and her face lit up when her eyes landed on Scorpia. "Scorpia!" she yelled, waving with her free arm.

Scorpia broke into a wide grin. "Get over here, you rascal!" She opened her arms wide, clacking her claws.

Entrapta made an excited sound and dashed over, hauling her startled-looking clone buddy along with her. As soon as she was within hugging range, she let go of him and launched herself up into Scorpia's arms, both women laughing and exclaiming. Perfuma aww'ed and clasped her hands to her chest delightedly.

Scorpia beamed at her, carefully setting her down. "So how was space? Was it as amazing as you hoped it'd be?"

"Better! Oooh I thought I was prepared for how incredible space would be, but I had no idea! We navigated through an _asteroid field_ which was _very dangerous_ and-" She let out a sharp gasp. "Oh! Scorpia, you were chipped! Are you okay now?"

"Ahh, I'm fine! Glad to be rid of that thing, heh!" Scorpia said. "So who's your new friend here?"

Entrapta squealed, fists pumping up and down. "It's Hordak! Scorpia, I found Hordak!" She grabbed him by the wrist and pulled him over. "And the funniest part is, I didn't even find him on the flagship, I found him right here on Etheria after we came _back_ from space! That's ironic, don't ya think? And he remembered me right away!" She latched onto his arm again, cackling ecstatically, as he blinked owlishly down at her.

Perfuma's smile turned a little confused, and she and Swiftwind traded astonished stares.

"Uh," Swiftwind said. "Hordak? Like... _Hordak_ -Hordak? The actual Hordak?" But no one answered, because Entrapta was otherwise occupied and Perfuma was... well, just stunned into silence, really.

but Scorpia perked up, tapping her pincers together joyfully. "That's great, oh I'm so happy for you! I know you were worried about him. But, uh..." She paused, squinting at him. "Are you sure? He doesn't really look... like..." And then her eyes went wide in understanding. "Oh. Ohhhhh. Oh, boy."

Given that Scorpia had been connected to the Hivemind, Hordak wondered exactly how many pieces she'd just put together. In the depths of his thoughts he could still hear the echo of Prime's coldly honeyed voice: _Fret not, Little Brother. I will take the burden of these sins, all of them, from your weary shoulders..._

Swiftwind had been looking back and forth between Entrapta and Hordak, and suddenly he lifted his head and said, "Ohhhhhh, I get it now. I get what happened that one time. Yeah, that all makes a lot more sense now."

Perfuma took a delicate inhale through her teeth. "Um, Entrapta...?"

"Yes?" came the perky reply, but anything Perfuma could have said next got cut off when Entrapta spotted the clone-bot-feline trio nearby. "OH, hold that thought!" She let go of Hordak's arm again to hoist herself up on her hair, waving both arms. "HEY, WRONG HORDAK, EMILY, OVER HERE!"

Hordak, too, had spotted the strange assortment of individuals: an Etherian Horde bot with a scratch near its optic lens, and a clone who was playing some sort of game with a... feline creature of some kind. Its purplish color and glowing blue mane evoked an uneasy feeling. Whatever this feeling was, this particular clone didn't seem to be troubled by it; he was making _kissy noises_ at the feline thing.

At Entrapta's shout, however, the clone (who, he assumed, was called Wrong Hordak for some reason) looked up, as did the other two; the bot started jittering in place, beeping happily, and the clone leaped to his feet with a delighted cry, sprinting over to meet them with the bot on his heels.

"Brother!" Wrong Hordak cried, arms flung up high. "You have returned safely! I am glad! I was so very worried for you!" All Hordak could do was stare at the incoming clone with confusion, which gained ground as Wrong Hordak scooped Entrapta up in a massive hug.

"I'm glad you're okay, too," Entrapta said, smiling widely and patting Wrong Hordak on the head with a tendril of hair. To Hordak, she added, "He just learned about hugs the other day and he's _very_ excited about it!"

"...Ah." Hordak wasn't sure what he was feeling about this, but he was fairly certain he didn't enjoy it.

"Heh, always like to see a fellow hugger!" Scorpia remarked, chuckling.

Perfuma giggled softly. "I knew you'd approve," she said just a little smugly. She waved a hand, manifesting a flower crown atop the clone's head. He gasped rapturously.

"Thank you, Brother Perfuma!" he exclaimed. Perfuma smiled and patted his arm.

The clone set Entrapta carefully back down so he could gently touch his new hat, and the bot (which had been dancing around impatiently nearby) barreled over, skidding to a stop just short of cannonballing into Entrapta, who shrieked happily and flung herself across its dome, hugging the bot with all four limbs and both ponytails. "Emily!"

Hordak vaguely remembered the bot from those days in the Sanctum; the rest of his memories were still resurfacing from Prime's suppression, and their work on the portal machine had already felt like a lifetime ago even on the day of Prime's arrival.

While Entrapta cooed over her bot, the feline creature had followed the two over and now sat in front of Hordak, regarding him levelly with its strange, flatly glowing eyes. Its stare sent a cold chill down his spine, but the feeling of cold dread wasn't his; it was some echo unearthed from deep within the remnants of the Hivemind. What had Prime been keeping from them?

Then Entrapta sat up on the bot's dome and turned to Wrong Hordak, saying in a sing-song voice, "I have a surprii~iise! Guess who _this_ is!" Riding atop the bot, she steered Hordak towards the other clone and then maneuvered to the side, shaking her fists in anticipation.

"Oh! Guessing! Oh my, I- I am not certain that I know how to guess!" Wrong Hordak said, ears drooping in worry. "Um, well- greetings, Brother! You must be, um..." He gave Entrapta a pleading, helpless glance.

Entrapta squealed gleefully. "It's Hordak! I found him!"

Wrong Hordak gasped loudly, eyes going wide, hands pressed together in front of his mouth. "B-brother H-hordak?" he quavered, reaching out with trembling hands.

"Yes?" Hordak said warily. He'd never seen a clone with such a high degree of...whatever _this_ was.

"This... this is truly a most blessed day," Wrong Hordak said tremulously. "Brother Hordak, he who granted himself a name...! H-he for whom I was named...!" He was actually crying now, big fat tears streaming freely down his cheeks. "He who Brother Entrapta has spoken of so fondly!" Well, that hit Hordak like a boot to the chest. Entrapta had spoken of him? Entrapta had spoken of him, _fondly_? Entrapta had spoken of him, fondly, _to other people_? "It is the greatest honor to stand in your presence, most exalted Brother!"

As he was still hung up on the "spoken of fondly" thing, he didn't notice the imminent hugging danger till Wrong Hordak was already grappling him in a tight embrace, the exuberant clone pinning his arms to his sides and actually lifting his feet clear off the ground, even though they were exactly the same height. Wrong Hordak was bawling openly and loudly into Hordak's shoulder now, tears soaking his tabard, and Hordak shot a consternated look over at Entrapta, who was misty-eyed and smiling from ear to ear.

"I have several questions," he informed Entrapta over the noisy sobbing. Perfuma did, too, for that matter. She doubted they had the same questions.

Meanwhile, Scorpia was nodding approvingly. "Yep, he's a hugger, all right. And he's a crier, too! Perfuma, you were right, we do have a lot in common!" she said, beaming.

"Oh yes, Wrong Hordak has _very_ strong emotions," Entrapta explained.

"Hoo boy, yeah, I can relate to that!" Scorpia said, putting her pincers on her hips and nodding. "Well, he seems really nice!"

"Yep! Bow and I accidentally sort of broke him and fried his brain when we were on the Horde flagship so of course we couldn't just leave him there, so we brought him home with us!" Entrapta said cheerfully.

Scorpia chortled. "Oh, that's so _you_!" Then she gasped, excited. "Ooh, does this mean we have a new addition for the Super Pal Trio? Although I guess it's not a trio anymore, then, huh? Oh, we can change the name to something like, 'The Super Pal Squad'! Or wait, no, 'squad' is already taken. Ooh! How about 'Super Pal _Brigade_ '?"

"I like it!" Entrapta hurried over to Wrong Hordak and patted him on the shoulder. "Hey, come and meet Scorpia!" The clone looked over at her, sniffling.

"S-scorpia?" he echoed, setting Hordak's feet back on the ground but not letting go.

"Yep! Scorpia, meet Wrong Hordak! Wrong Hordak, Scorpia!" Entrapta beamed, pleased with herself.

Scorpia chortled. "Okay, I'm _really_ curious about this name of yours."

"As am I," Hordak managed to grit out, squirming in the other clone's iron grip. He was torn between a desire to free himself from this maniac's embrace, and the knowledge that doing so would decimate what little dignity he had left. One side was winning, though, and it wasn't the side with his dignity.

"Brother Bow granted me this name!" Wrong Hordak said reverently.

"Aww, that was nice of him! Why 'wrong' though?" Scorpia asked. "You seem 'all right' to me, eh? Eh? Get it? Heheh! Ahhh, still got it."

"Oh, that's simple! I was trying to find Hordak while we were on the flagship, but there's just _soooo_ _many_ _clones_ and they all look alike since they're clones and share nearly identical genetic code, but then I saw Wrong Hordak on the flagship and I thought the way he scowled looked _very_ _familiar_ so I thought he might be Hordak, buuut he wasn't and he _attacked_ me and then Bow shot one of his electric arrows at him and _that's_ when his brains got fried," Entrapta explained cheerily.

Meanwhile, as soon as she'd mentioned that she had tried to find him, Hordak's aggravation at his present situation had evaporated instantly, and he now stood slackly in Wrong Hordak's grip, feeling like the wind had been knocked out of him.

Hordak's list of questions was only growing longer, but before any of those questions could be voiced, Scorpia spotted the Best Friend Squad making their way back down the slope, and greeted them with a shout and a wide smile and a double-pincer wave.

Melog reached them first with Swiftwind right on its heels, bounding over to Catra with a string of melodic trills and warbles, nuzzling up against her. Catra smiled, stroking its head. Swiftwind pranced up to Adora with a cheerful whinny and butted his nose against her cheek. She laughed and rubbed his forehead.

Everybody gathered around as the squad rejoined them, their voices rising in a chorus of exhilarated chatter.

Perfuma's voice rose above the rest. "Is it really over? We won?" she asked, hands clasped in hope.

Adora smiled and nodded. "Yes, it's really over. He's gone, he's never going to hurt anyone ever again. Not here, not anywhere else in the universe. We're safe." A cheer went up. Adora took Catra's hand again, trading shy smiles. "We're safe," she repeated, quieter this time. The softness in the curl of Catra's lips, the relaxed slant to her ears, made Adora's heart flutter; that softness had come so close to being stamped out of Catra's heart forever. Adora resolved then and there that she'd protect that softness with everything she had from that day on.

"Are you all okay? Is anyone hurt?" Bow asked.

Micah spoke up. "I've been making the rounds and checking on everyone. We've got a whole lot of bruises and scrapes, possibly a few sprains, but nothing too serious. We were lucky." He chuckled a little. "Good thing I learned how to improvise some field first aid, patching myself up on Beast Island all those years, huh?"

" _Must_ you joke about that?" Castaspella protested.

"Beats crying about it," Micah said with a shrug.

"Okay, so what's the plan now?" Netossa asked.

Adora grimaced. "Uh, um, well... that's a good question. I guess we should, uh... I mean, probably everybody else around Etheria and... on all the other planets that were rebelling against Prime... are probably all wondering what just happened, so..."

"I know I would be," Catra agreed in an undertone.

"And what do we do with, um..." Perfuma paused, clearing her throat delicately, "... _them_?" She pointed gingerly at the rim of the canyon, where the remnants of Prime's clone troops still stood.

Adora grimaced. "Uh," she said. "Are... are they... our... prisoners... now, or...?"

There were considerably fewer of them than there had been just a few minutes ago, and Adora was vaguely concerned about that. Had they wandered off? Had they been swallowed up by the newly grown vegetation? (Some of them clearly had been, as they were now struggling to disentangle themselves from various shrubs and trees.) Both ideas were unsettling for different reasons. Some of the clones were definitely watching the heroes intently, for what reason she didn't know. A few of them seemed to be inching closer, which was possibly worrying. They didn't _look_ hostile, at least, but they all still had those hefty laser cannons on their arms...

Adora coughed nervously into her fist and looked around the group. "So, uh. Suggestions... anyone? Anyone?"

The group murmured amongst themselves; Adora took that as a resounding 'probably not'. She glanced at Glimmer, who sputtered.

"What're you looking at me for?" she whined.

"You're the Queen of Bright Moon," Adora pointed out.

"W-well, you're She-Ra," Glimmer pointed back. Both girls turned to look hopefully at Micah and Castaspella, the eldest of the group.

Micah chuckled gently. "Don't look at me, I've been on a deserted island. Been a while since my last strategy meeting."

Castaspella sighed heftily. "I guess it falls to me, then!" she proclaimed. "As I understand it, this would normally be the time when the leader of the enemy forces would surrender to the victors, but as Horde Prime seems to have been very thoroughly dispatched, well..."

"Ooh! Hordak can do that!" Entrapta piped up, pointing at him with a few hair-tentacle-hands. In the resulting silence, a mouse sneezing would've sounded like thunder. Entrapta added, "Well, technically he already did surrender to Adora, buuut she said he should surrender again to everybody else, too, so... would now be a good time for that?"

"Um," Spinerella said. Glancing over at Adora, she said, "What's this about a surrender?"

Adora sputtered, "W-well, I mean, he _volunteered_ , so..."

"Hordak? Like, the one we were fighting?" Frosta whispered loudly to Netossa, who just gaped. Behind them, Micah's face darkened from mild amusement to a fierce scowl. Castaspella stood closer to her brother, at the ready. And at the rear of the group, what had been a look of mild bemusement on Mermista's face had darkened like a thunderhead into something much colder and harder. Beside Mermista, with his arm still around her, Sea Hawk noticed the sudden tension in her shoulders and back; he glanced down at her worriedly.

Mermista shrugged off Sea Hawk's arm and stormed forward. "Okay, wait, no, hold on. No. _Hordak_? _Pleeease_ tell me they're all named that, and I'm not actually seeing her being all snuggly with, like, _the_ Hordak. Like, the one that's been at war with Etheria since before most of us here were even _born_?"

Entrapta said brightly, "Oh, the rest of the clones don't have names! This one's definitely Hordak." She cheerfully patted his forearm- or rather, the alarmingly large laser cannon equipped to his forearm, about which she seemed neither aware nor concerned (which was very Entrapta of her, Scorpia thought to herself).

Mermista made a noise somewhere between a groan and a snarl. " _Seriously_ , Geek Princess?!"

Entrapta's smile dropped into a confused stare. "What's wrong?"

Perfuma eased herself over to Entrapta, gently setting a hand on her upper back. "Um, Entrapta, sweetie, can we talk to you?"

"Sure! What about?" she asked, her easygoing enthusiasm coming right back.

"Um, well..." She hesitated, then turned to Hordak with a forced smile. "Ahaha, um, would you just... excuse us for a moment, please? Princess meeting, surely you understand, ahahah..." She pried Entrapta's hands off his arm, a grunt of effort escaping her strained smile, and herded Entrapta towards the rest of the group.

It didn't escape Hordak's notice that the rest of the princesses along with the archer and the pirate closed in around her, effectively shutting her away from his line of sight. And if the message hadn't already been clear, the remaining two placed themselves between Hordak and the huddled group: the good sorceress from Mystacor, and the once-king of Bright Moon- who crossed his arms over his stout chest and scowled.

A clone sidled anxiously up beside him on the right, and Hordak could practically feel the waves of worry rolling off him; a quick glance sideways confirmed it was Wrong Hordak, fidgeting fretfully. Not exactly his preferred companion at the moment.

Then he heard snorty breathing to his left, and felt gusty exhales against the side of his head. He spared a glance sideways; it was the aggressively colorful winged unicorn. It narrowed its eyes at him, then swept its wing forward. It pointed its pinion feathers at its eyes, then at Hordak. He arched a brow ridge at it, then turned his attention back to the group, very pointedly and easily watching them over the top of the much shorter former-king's head.

"So, what's up?" Entrapta asked brightly.

Perfuma took a breath in and out through her nose, fingers steepled in front of her lips, eyebrows furrowed as she composed herself and picked out her words.

"Um, I... want to make sure that we're all... um... understanding you correctly," she began delicately. "So, when you say that _this_ clone is Hordak, you mean... the same Hordak that used to live in the Fright Zone? The same one that was the leader of the Horde here on Etheria?"

"Yep!"

"The _exact_ same one? And _not_ a _different_ clone with the _same_ _name_? You're completely sure?"

Entrapta chortled like Perfuma had just told her an especially clever joke. "Perfuma, I know he's a clone and all, but there's only one Hordak!" she told her, hands on hips, taking on a teasingly chiding tone.

Perfuma forced a little chuckle. "Right, of course. And, um, you and Hordak are... friends?"

"And lab partners!"

"Ohhh...kay. And, um, when did this start?"

"Oh, when we were building the portal machine. You remember, the one that ripped reality apart?" Entrapta supplied helpfully.

Perfuma smiled tightly. "Why, yes, I _do_ remember that! Ahaha!" she said, her voice strained.

"Why do you ask?" Entrapta put her head to the side.

Perfuma sighed, taking another second to collect herself once more. "Well, Entrapta, I think we're all just... a little _concerned_ -"

"Uh, I'm not concerned, I'm _angry_ ," Mermista growled. She elbowed past Perfuma and stood in front of Entrapta, arms crossed.

"Why are you angry?" Entrapta asked, eyes wide.

"Oh, why am I angry?! _Why_ am I _angry_?!" mermista yelled.

Sea Hawk, looking back and forth between them in alarm, forced a chortle and hurried back to Mermista's side, saying, "Well! This is certainly, um, an unexpected turn of events! Perhaps we should ask Entrapta to, uh, regale us with the, uhh, doubtlessly thrilling tale...? The tale of, um, uh, why Hordak's here...?"

Glimmer gave an uneasy little laugh. "That's a _wonderful idea_ , Sea Hawk!" she said, teeth bared in a look that was more grimace than grin.

"Y'know what, I'd like to hear that story, too," Netossa agreed pointedly, arms crossed.

"And while we're at it, I wanna know why _she's_ here," Mermista added sharply, jabbing a finger in Catra's direction. "Yeah, don't think I didn't notice you two making googly eyes at each other. What is she doing here, and are you seriously _holding hands with her_?! Last I heard, you two were at each other's throats! What is going _on_ here?! "

Adora felt Catra stiffen beside her, and she chuckled nervously. "Um, Mermista? Actually, uh..."

Mermista scoffed derisively. "What, is she, like, on our side now or something?" When Adora's only response was another awkward little laugh, Mermista let out an exasperated yell and dragged her hands down her face. " _Are. You. Kidding me?!_ She's with us now?! And are you two, like... an _item_?"

Adora laughed sheepishly. "Yeah, um, a _lot_ happened out in space."

Mermista scoffed, crossing her arms. "Yeah, I guess it must've been a lot, if we're just gonna let it slide that she made our lives _miserable_ for the last three years."

Catra's hand jerked out of Adora's like it'd been burned, and Adora felt her spirits sink. She'd had a feeling Mermista would be the least likely to accept Catra's change of heart; understandable, with everything she'd lost to the Horde. And Adora was starting to realize she should've thought about how to deal with this. Should have, and hadn't. Winning had felt like such a longshot, and herself living long enough to see it had felt even less likely; it hadn't even occurred to her that she should plan for what was, in hindsight, an inevitable clash. Then again, Frosta's tackling punch when she'd first seen Catra at the hideout should probably have given her a hint or three.

Catra took a step back from Adora. "Maybe I shouldn't be here right now," she murmured.

"Catra, wait," Adora whispered urgently to her. She turned to Mermista, determined to smooth this over. At least for now, anyway. "Look, I know there's a lot we need to talk about. We were all apart and a lot has changed." She strode up to Mermista, and held her gently but firmly by the shoulders. "I'm not asking you to trust Catra, or Hordak, but I _am_ asking you to trust _me_. Okay? Just for a little while longer? Please?"

Mermista held her glare, but then the anger seemed to drain out of her. She heaved a sigh. "Fine, I guess," she muttered. "But you better have a really good explanation."

Adora smiled wearily. "I promise I'll explain everything. I will. And you can decide for yourself if you're okay with it or not."

"Better believe I will," Mermista grumbled. She shot a glare at Hordak, and then at Catra, and then she retreated to Sea Hawk's side again, arms crossed, slouched and leaning her shoulder against his arm.

"Okay," Adora said through a wheezing sigh, fists on hips.

"So, is that it, or..." Entrapta said hopefully.

"Um, yeah. I guess. For now, anyway," Glimmer said, shrugging helplessly.

"Great!" Entrapta said, grinning. She bolted out of the group and back to Hordak's side, latching onto him again and picking up where she'd left off in her rambling monologue from before.

Micah took Adora's elbow lightly as she started to walk towards Swiftwind.

"I know you said you'd like to explain a few things to Mermista later on, but, until then, are we really going to let him just walk around freely?" he asked her in an undertone. Adora glanced over at him, and he jerked his head towards Hordak.

Adora paused, watching the duo ahead of them. While Entrapta rambled, Hordak stood there in a way that could best be described as 'placid', unconcernedly letting her cling to and tug on his arm, eyes focused on her and nodding along with whatever it was she was saying.

Adora arched her eyebrows, smirking. "I think Entrapta's got this under control," she told him.

"Hmm," Micah muttered. He paused, then added, "You said he _volunteered_ to surrender to you? It doesn't concern you that he offered that up so easily?"

Smiling, Adora turned and clapped Micah on the shoulders. "I'm gonna tell you what I told Mermista: trust me on this."

"You could save us all some time and explain now, rather than later," Micah pointed out.

"I could," Adora agreed ruefully, "But there's, uh, a _lot_ I wanna say and I'm really, _really tired_..." Her voice pitched up into a petulant, slightly pleading whine at the end.

The corner of Micah's mouth ticked up in a hint of a sympathetic smile, then he glanced aside and eyed the clone warily again. Finally, he sighed and shrugged. "You saved me from Beast Island and you got us through the war. I'm willing to wait and see what you've got planned."

"Thanks," she said, and then she went to rejoin Bow, Glimmer, and Catra.

"Uh," Bow said. "So, I was thinking, during the fight I was able to hijack Prime's network and get a message out to everyone- all over Etheria, and on the other planets too. I want to send out another message to let everyone know it's over, that he's gone and we won."

"That would be amazing," Adora agreed, smiling in relief.

"We can help with that!" Entrapta chimed in. She shook Hordak's arm and grabbed Wrong Hordak with a lock of hair, pulling him over on her other side.

"Ooh, we should go and help, too!" Scorpia exclaimed, turning to Catra. "Super Pal Trio reunion! Plus new additions!" Melog trilled in agreement, butting its forehead against Catra's side.

"Uh... sure?" Catra hazarded. She was immediately swept along by the combined enthusiasm of Scorpia, Entrapta, and Wrong Hordak in full swing. Bow followed them towards the spire, smiling.

Adora turned to the rest of the group. She felt so clear-headed now. Exhausted to the bone, but clear-headed. It had all clicked into place. "Okay, I'm thinking we should round up the rest of the clones now. Um, let's see... Mermista, Spinnerella, Castaspella, Swiftwind, can you start gathering them up so they're all together? Netossa, Perfuma, Frosta, and Micah, you guys surround them with... fences, I guess? Like, fences made of... you know, nets, plants, ice, and... magic...? Just so the rest of them don't wander off."

Frosta grinned, ice flashing into massive gauntlets around her fists and forearms. "On it!"

"I mean, uh, please don't punch them if they're not fighting back," Adora said, wincing. She wasn't really sure what was supposed to happen with prisoners of war, if that's what these were, but punching them if they weren't a threat anymore seemed like something _not_ to do. That felt like the _opposite_ of the right thing to do.

As the group started splitting up and heading off towards the remaining clones, something occurred to Adora and she jogged after Bow's group. She caught up to Entrapta and her clone entourage and stopped in front of them, smiling back and forth between the two Hordaks. "Hi. Can I borrow you two for a bit? I need your help."

"Of course, Brother!" Wrong Hordak gushed, hands clasped excitedly. Hordak just nodded brusquely.

"Thanks. I need you to help us with the rest of your brothers. Can you make sure they understand what's happening and that we don't want to fight anymore? I'm hoping they'll surrender peacefully. I don't want anyone else getting hurt today if we can avoid it," Adora said.

Hordak tilted his head, considering. "With Horde Prime gone and the Hivemind destroyed, some of them may well lash out. However, it is far more likely that they will be lost, confused- and, therefore, they should be easily led towards a peaceful resolution."

"Well, if Wrong Hordak was any example, then you're probably right. He, uh, kinda had a breakdown," Adora said, wincing as she remembered the clone's inconsolable sobs in her earpiece on Krytis.

"Brother Adora is correct! When I was severed from the Hivemind, I was devastated! Heartbroken! And when I then learned the truth of Prime's many foul deceptions, I had what Brother Entrapta referred to as an 'existential crisis'!" Wrong Hordak agreed blithely.

Hordak arched a brow ridge. "...Unfortunate. It will not be pleasant for them, but if the others have that reaction as well, it may be of use here," Hordak said.

Adora shrugged. "If it means no more fighting, I'm good with that. We can help them with the existential crisis thing once we've got them all settled in somewhere safe." She paused, then grimaced and added, "And, uh... mayyyybe see if you can get them to take off the arm cannons...? Just... ah... stack those up somewhere..."

"We will do our best! Come, Brother Hordak, we will begin at once!" He yanked an irritated Hordak from Entrapta's grasp and hauled him off towards the rest of the group.

"But how are we going to help Bow with the broadcast and help round up the clones at the same time?" Entrapta asked.

Adora gave her a sympathetic smile. "I was hoping you could stay with Bow while those two go and help with the clones. Bow could really use your help getting the network up and running again. Please?"

Entrapta made a reluctant sound, glancing anxiously over her shoulder at Hordak's retreating figure. Adora had an inkling of what the problem was. She stooped down to eye level with the shorter princess. Quietly, she said, "It's okay, he's not going far. He'll be right back and no one's gonna hurt him. I promise."

Entrapta gazed longingly over her shoulder, then she drooped a little and conceded with a nod.

"Thank you," Adora told her. "Okay, I'm gonna go catch up to those guys and figure out who's doing what. Good luck with the broadcast."

"Okay," Entrapta said, mustering a smile. She took one last look and then hurried off, and Adora went after the two Hordaks.

The clone-wranglers had split up into two groups, taking either side of the canyon rim. The Hordaks had gone after one of them, and she hurried to catch up and fell into step between them.

"Hey," she said to Wrong Hordak, "Go on ahead, okay? I wanna talk to your brother. We'll catch up."

"Very well, Brother!" Wrong Hordak said with his customary enthusiasm. It seemed like his default state. He jogged on ahead.

To Hordak, she said, "You know, I like to think anybody can start over, if they really want to. I'm a believer in new beginnings. You up for that?"

He raised a brow ridge at her. "Are you offering me a second chance, Adora? After all that I've done, and would have done, to your friends and your world?"

"I'm not saying any of that stuff was okay," Adora explained, "But... the war's over, and here you are. You lived."

"For now," he agreed grimly. "You seem quite certain your fellow princesses will allow me to remain as such."

"We don't do executions, Hordak. And we don't do banishments to deadly islands, either." She smirked. "We're the good guys, remember?"

"Hmmph."

"You're gonna have to do _something_ to account for your part in the war, don't get me wrong," Adora told him. "But you'll be alive to do it. Might as well make the most of it. So... are you willing to try a new beginning, to live a new life?"

"A new life..." he echoed quietly. They walked in silence for a few seconds before he said, "I was created to serve the will of Horde Prime. My life belonged to him. To claim my life for myself, to live for myself, would have been blasphemy. We clones existed only to serve him."

"And now he's gone." She tilted her head. "Do you wish he wasn't?"

Hordak didn't answer at first. "What you do not know, Adora, is that I renounced Horde Prime in the last moments before he took possession of my mind. I did indeed claim my life for my own, the greatest heresy. I had seen the truth: to us, he was everything. To him, we were nothing. I turned against my creator and cast him from the bridge of the flagship. As such... no, I do not regret his demise."

Adora's jaw dropped. "Wh- wait, when you say you 'cast him from the bridge', do you mean... uh, literally?"

"Quite literally," he agreed.

"That reeeeaaaallyyy high bridge? The one above the... big, gaping void?"

"The very same."

"Uh. Wow. Okay, good to know," Adora said, flummoxed. There was a lot to unpack there, but they were almost to the rest of the group. She figured it was time to put a pin in this conversation. "Ohhhkay, so, about what I was saying..."

"I can offer no excuses for my actions," he warned. "I began this war to serve my creator, a tale which I imagine will be cold comfort to those who have suffered at the Horde's hands."

"Not asking for excuses. I'm asking if you're ready to get to work, to make a place for yourself in this new day."

His ears dipped back in a way that made her think of Catra. There was a flicker of something in his expression; she liked to think it was hope. Still, he deliberated before speaking again. "You've made this offer quite readily, Adora, yet you and I both know that it is not only _your_ decision."

"You're right, it's not. But I do get a voice in it, and that's not nothing. I mean, I _am_ She-Ra," she added with a chortle, shooting for a joke to lighten the mood. He didn't look convinced.

"Think about it," she told him. "We'll talk it over later."

"And if your fellow Princesses are less inclined to offer me a second chance?"

She shrugged. "Only one way to find out," she said, and she turned and started to walk over to the second group of clone-wranglers.

Behind her, Hordak called out, "Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why would you be so willing to offer me a second chance, after everything?"

"Call it a hunch! Like I said, I'm a big fan of new beginnings," she called over her shoulder. Further down the valley, she spotted a russet-brown figure wrangling a mass of cables at the base of the spire, tail flicking in agitation. Warmth blossomed in her chest and on her cheeks. Smiling, she added, "Besides, today's a good day for second chances."


End file.
